Mika Lappalainen | Friday, 3 April 2026
As we know in English you have these silent letters as many other languages. I don't know who come up this idea, but for Finnish person this is stupid. In English you write letters on paper and then you just don't say all of them. In Finnish you say all the letters you write. We are equal even to letters. At least we don't waste paper for nothing.
I have been tying flies this week, it is slowly coming together. Some are still ugly as hell and some even start look pretty decent. All of them will catch a fish, or will they? I saw few interesting comments when dropping rabbit hole in tying.
There was this one video where guy tied really nice parachute dry fly, he used left over cdc as wing. Fly was really neatly tied and surely will catch a fish. BUT, wing was orange (!) And absolutely no time there was someone commenting that trout will surely rise and then it will see orange it will reject the fly. Other one was "cheering", trouts are afraid orange colours.
I got similar comment few years back as I use SA comp line for fishing, as we know it is orange, I was told that trouts will spook color and I won't get fish. Well I did few pretty nice ones with dries and emergers.
So is there really any truth behind this? That orange will spook trouts? If you have orange on fly, you won't catch as you spook them. Tell me how it is possible that I have caught some nice trouts with orange head nymphs or fully orange wooly buggers if orange colour will spook trout.
Exactly, it depends... we make easily rules about fishing, casting and tying flies. As we make those it will limit our actions and then our fishing. In one nation people were not afraid Orange and now he is president, unfortunately. So if you really believe orange will spook trouts, don't take him anywhere near to rivers.
I also hit another discussion about nymphing vs dry flies. As you might remember Nymphing is masturbation. There was older guy, who said that he has been guiding since 1979 and if some tells him, that he will do only dry flies.... This guide will make comparison to golfers that dry fly fishing is like golfer only using putt. For me there was everything wrong on that comparison. He was right that then you only use one method from fly fishing selection, that's it.
Nymphing is like using putt, you do close range shots and eventually you will get ball in hole. If you are good everytime from first shot, as you might get with nymphing. So comparing for golf would be, nymphing is like golfer who only do putts, and you walk on green with ball so you will be close enough to reach hole. Dry fly fisherman is the one who swings from distance and aim hole-in-one shot, when you are good one, you do it quite often.
Back to silent letter. Why you only stick with silent letters why not also have silent numbers?
So I own you 85 euros?
Yes, please pay it back now.
So 85, here you are, eight is silent.
You are welcome.
And in letters.
Do I have flat stomach, yes I do, L is silent.
Happy Easter and go fishing or golfing
Mika the Legend